The Glee Project Season 2 Finale Recap: And the Winner Is... [Updated]

Say what you want about The Glee Project, but it’s one of the few reality series on television that doesn’t add an extra hour or two of padding to its season finale. So tonight, instead of a bloated two- or three-hour endurance test to get us to an announcement that took all of 10 seconds, we got an action-packed hour that shone a spotlight on the respective strengths and weaknesses of the Season 2 Top 3: Aylin, Ali, and Blake.

What we didn’t get, alas, was relief from the “boys rule” doctrine that’s dominated music-centric reality competition series for half a decade now.

In crowning Blake Jenner as the Season 2 champ, executive producer Ryan Murphy rewarded the competition’s second most-consistent player — sorry, folks, but the top spot still belongs to sixth-place finisher Shanna — who also happened to be its No. 1 draft pick for creating a heartthrob sensation in the vein of Darren Criss.

[Side note: Anyone else catch Ryan Murphy’s Tweet from earlier today? “Who will win THE GLEE PROJECT 2? Writing such a great role for the winner! And just wait until you see who they are dating…” Please post your theories/suggestions below!]

Anyhow, while it’s true that in the wake of Shanna’s ouster, I’d joined Team Aylin — and her rip-roaring rendition of “Rolling in the Deep” did nothing to dissuade me from hoping she’d win the seven-episode guest arc on the Glee mothership — but I can’t get upset over Blake’s win. His singing voice may be more solid than spectacular, but he exhibited twice the acting talent of Season 1 champs Samuel Larsen and Damian McGinty during their combined Glee Project runs, he’s got a tremendous head of hair, and he seems like a genuinely nice guy. I’d definitely rank him in the Top 3 or 4 contestants of Season 2, so don’t look to me for any garment-tearing or teeth-gnashing or hand-wringing.

Okay, maybe just a wee bit of teeth-gnashing, since it seemed as thought the judges/mentors pretty much ignored the final video shoot of the season and the final set of last-chance performances in the process of choosing their winner.

But let’s start at the very beginning. (“A very good place to start.” –You) We kicked things off with a homework assignment of “You Can’t Stop the Beat” (from Hairspray) in which no one particularly stood out, maybe because 10 of the 11 previously eliminated contestants, or perhaps just Lily, were drowning them out. (I kid, I kid!) Guest judge Chris Colfer declared all three finalists as winners, which resulted in a strange moment of “You get a mentoring session! And you get a mentoring session! And you get a mentoring session!”

Then it was time for the main shoot — a video of Hot Chelle Rae’s “Tonight, Tonight” set at a senior prom that found Ali as the flirty mean girl, Aylin as the chick who had to sneak out against her parent’s wishes, and Blake as the popular but humble prom king.

And while Aylin needed her lyrics sheet in the studio, I thought she best embodied a real life high-school student getting her party on. That girls’ room hair shake, followed by a spell behind the turntables, wasn’t merely convincing, but proved yet again that Aylin’s got some on-screen magnetism that pulls focus from the folks wading in the background. (Side note: Regarding said background players, I kept finding my attention drawn to Shanna, and somewhat surprisingly, to the often subdued Dani, who looked unspeakably gorgeous.)

Ali, meanwhile, dug into the best-defined role of the mini-movie like a Weight Watchers subscriber using up their Swing Points in one sitting. I liked that she managed to score some genuine laughs with her screentime, a skill that seems to get short shrift in the Glee Project universe, despite the fact that Glee is — at least as far as Emmy sees it — a comedy. Credit to Ian Brennan for visualizing Ali in a broad, bitchy role, as we all know Tracy Flicks do exist in real life.

Blake, for his part, gave what felt like his least compelling video performance of the season. His stage dive into the crowd was disappointingly half-hearted, and where the heck was his prom-king swagger?

Oh, and I almost forgot that Damian McGinty showed up as a surprise guest, though honestly, he seemed about as vital to the proceedings as he did lurking in the background through the latter half of Glee‘s third season. (Cue sad trombone here.)

Finally, it was time for last-chance performances:

* Ali chose “Popular” from Wicked, in keeping with Ian’s vision of her as a promiscuous bitch, and this seemed like a smart strategic move to me. Indeed, while there are still moments where I find Ali’s singing voice to be slightly strident, there’s no arguing she was the most successful in fully bringing to life a fully realized character during her time on stage.

* Blake chose a Dalton-esque blazer, a hoodie, and Edwin McCain’s “I’ll Be,” all of which flew in the face of trying to show Ryan Murphy new and intriguing sides to his personality. The performance itself was good, but I wanted to jump up and cheer when Ryan asked if Blake’s microphone-tossing trick was supposed to “the thing I haven’t seen before.” Au contraire, countered our eventual winner, who then whipped out a poem about being the guy who’s been hurt, who’s steadfast, who’s funny, etc. I’d have prefered a dramatic reading from Hamlet, or maybe even Overboard (which is an awesome movie, BTW), but I’ll give points to the guy for calling himself “the whitest half-Cuban ever.”

* Aylin, for her part, gave the night’s most mesmerizing vocal performance by tearing the head off Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,” then roasting it with a honey glaze and some sprigs of rosemary. (Okay, that made no sense…but she sounded really, really great, with impressive amounts of emotional intensity.) Amber Riley’s “Sing, Heffa!” grin pretty much told the tale.

When Ryan finally polled the Glee cast members and writers who’d attended the final performances, it seemed like loyalties were pretty evenly dispersed among the Top 3, but then Charlie — who was eliminated in Episode 6, and therefore probably didn’t have much sway with the people making the actual decisions — had to go and yammer on about how Aylin had the power to “take the bridge of fear and intolerance that has defined the post 9/11 decade in this country and burn it to the ground.” Talk about putting the “dbag” in “windbag”! The only thing dude burned to the ground was his girlcrush’s chances at victory! Argh.

For a second, I hoped Ryan might go back on his word and declare more than one winner — or at least name one winner, and a pair of consolation prizes giving Aylin and Ali (and maybe Shanna?) two-episode arcs on Glee as well — but it wasn’t meant to be. At least not for now. Let’s end with a poem.

He’s that guy with the windswept Bieber mane
He’s that guy who says that he’s known pain
He’s the guy who’ll be joining New Directions
He’s that guy who’s the object of affections
He’s that guy with a seven-episode arc-ie
He’s that guy who’s more sincere than snarky
He’s that guy who’ll hook up with [name redacted]
He’s that guy, let’s be thankful he can act, yes?

And now it’s your turn to hit the comments with your thoughts. Did the right person win Season 2 of The Glee Project? If not, who should’ve taken home what Zach Woodlee thinks is “the biggest prize on television”? And how did Season 2 compare to Season 1? Sound off below, and for all the recaps of reality-competition series you can possibly handle, follow me on Twitter @MichaelSlezakTV!

You pretty much told the story of my life. First it was Haley Reinhart, then Lindsay Pierce (who should have won by a LANDSLIDE), Jessica Sanchez, and finally Aylin. My favorites never win :/ But Blake was pretty solid, have to admit. It makes it better when there are two judges (not going to say any names), Jlo &Randy, who aren’t complete idiots.

I would have been okay with any of the final three. I believe Blake is more than deserving and was actually surprised he won. I thought Aylin had it in the bag because last year story trumped talent and I thought Ryan wanted to write a Muslim character. It was a good finale!

Exactly. It seemed like this time around Ryan chose a person who has more acting ability versus strong vocals or a soap opera life story. It’s refreshing because 1) 95% of the current (including future past cast members) couldn’t act. 2) Ryan was able to show he can seperate fact from fiction. I didn’t want Aylin to win because she is Muslim and they could write another version of what happened with Mike’s parents (them not accepting his lifestyle choices due to cultural reasons). Ali was nice but her charm got her to thr finale. However, I do wish the cast was more ethnically diverse (and yes, I’m aware its a small town in Ohio) but seriously was Mercedes and Shane the only black people in all of Lima attending Mckinley? Right. . . .

While it’s true that Mercedes is the only cast member who’s black, there were more than you give the show credit for. There was the girl Shane took to prom, there was the football player Kurt tried to set Mercedes up with last year, there’s a few black Cheerios, there’s Roz Washington and even she had a few black swimmers on her team. So, I agree that a show like Glee could use more ethnic/racial/cultural diversity, but don’t trivialize what it has done.

No, Shane didn’t show up until Season 3. Kurt tried to set her up in Season 2 with a totally different person. Unless they recast the role in S3, I’m fairly confident that they’re two different people.

In hindsight, I think that Ryan and co. were scared to go ahead with a rebellious Muslim storyline. In the finale, they kept wondering if Aylin could handle any backlash her character could create being on Glee, when she seemed okay with the possibility of any backlash from her behavior on The Glee Project. I think in truth, it was Ryan and the rest of the Glee staff that were nervous – as unique as it would be to have such a character, they would have to walk a fine line to make her interesting without upsetting a demographic for how you choose to create the character. I think they realized they would’ve been in over their heads and they don’t want to risk losing more viewers for Glee, even if it would’ve also created buzz. Blake was a safe choice…not a bad choice, just a safe one.

Exactly! I think he has what they have in mind for a character in the New Directions. Besides, it has been centered around Rachel Berry since the pilot. Season 2, they tried to appease fans to give other characters more focus. That, IMO, started a season of way too many stories with little emphasis on each character. That which made the season choppy and each story was short and concise to even unfinished. My opinion only, but it was more decompartmentalized and went all over the place making some of the characters be portrayed way out of character.

No it wasn’t. She was the lead of an ensemble show. She wasn’t the only character who mattered. She’s lost root-ability from all but her biggest fans. I liked Rachel until the end of season 3. I hope I can like her again.

If it wasn’t her show then she wouldn’t be the “lead” as you put it. She’d be a supporting actress like the cast of Modern Family or early Friends. Just because it has an ensemble doesn’t mean that it’s everyone’s show. Parks and Rec is Leslie Knope’s show, not Ron Swanson’s. Just like how Glee’s Rachel’s show and not Sue’s.

I love that it is the Rachel Berry show. She has only begun to show what her character is about. Glee since the pilot brought up metaphors and how important they are at McKinley and to Rachel Berry. Rachel represented the loser-lower class of person, who isn’t worth noticing or caring about. Finn Hudson represents the popular student-a jock who fits in a mold of what is expected out of him(king, who to emulate from, an example of whom is important and worthy of every student’s admiration)(Something Quinn needed Finn for). But when Glee assembled is Rachel and Finn represented these two separate and totally opposite worlds or cast of people who unite to become one unit (this what a Glee club is-one voice-one unit). All the students at McKinlry fit into one of these classes, until Finn broke that mold and wanted to be different and join the Glee club to be good at something (his own words). After three seasons, the Glee club showed the school student body that they were worthy of being noticed and were acknowledged as the best in the nation. No more slushies. No matter what some people think that Glee is as a show, it is a show about the talent of a nobody, who has a lack of social and interpersonal issues, and the good talents of all the other characters who enter this unit (Glee) to form one voice and how those characters interacted and changed by becoming one with Rachel. She changed for the better by knowing them. Each of them were changed by knowing her. All were better people for it. Metaphors are a big deal to Glee. Every type of person was represented by a character. Examples: Artie-disabled. Mercedes-a person who is not slim but proud. Brittany- a person who is sweet and popular but doesn’t exhibit intellect. Sam- a person who is physically fit and good looking but insecure. Quinn and Santana- people who needed popularity to define them because of their insecurities. Puck- a person who represents what insecurity can do ultimately creating a character with flaws to the point of being a criminal. This is why I love Glee. All people from various backgrounds. But to be an ensemble cast of characters it is not. These different types of people are represented as the surrounding influence on Rachel. She said it in the pilot-she is a star and that is what she wants to be. She is the only one to make it out of Lima as the show says she would. Yes, because of this, she is the central figure of the show-The Rachel Berry Show.

After what happened last season with Damian McGinty, u bet your @ss Ryan was going to pick the best actor, and that was Blake by a mile. As likeable as Ali was, and as much as the Muslim story with Aylin appealed to them, they had to bring in a star quality actor. And I for one am happy that the writers have to create a role for a multi-talented actor instead of just leeching a life story from a kid and then hoping that kid can pull it off for real on film. Absolute right choice

I am so excited Blake won! I’ve been team Blake since Shanna was voted off and definitely thought he was the most deservintold the win of the final 3 (with Aylin being a close second). For me, it was not about who was the best singer, but who was the best overall for the show. And I think Blake was by far the best actor from this season and, like Michael said, a solid singer. I’ll think he’ll add a lot to the show and bring some real vulnerability and emotion to his character. Go Blake!

When those two new girls were just recently added to the Glee cast list you knew Blake had it here. They needed a new Finn. Ryan basically said it outright before the winner announcement when he said current cast members were graduating and there being “shoes to fill”.

I love how last year, when it was a girl (Lindsay) that all the mentors said was the most TV Ready actor with the best voice, Ryan decides to go with Irish “twink” McCantact and the Rapestafarian. This year it’s a guy who gets the most passable(at best) acting reccomendation and suddenly Ryan values their opinion again. What a joke.

Robert also gave approval to allow Damian and Samuel to appear on a scripted TV show last year as more than extras, so forgive me if I don’t value the mentor’s opinion’s as anything other than that of a lovesick fangirls

I get where u are coming from on this. The one thing I did like this year, compared to GP1, is that it seems Ryan was watching a lot more actual film footage instead of relying on his team’s word. And Blake was great on camera. Plus, this is Glee which means a huge female audience, so he went with the hot guy

I think the writers/producers learned a lesson from last season’s Glee Project when they chose people with good stories who embodied Glee rather than people who could act. I think they realize that it’s easier to write up a story (they are supposed “writers” afterall) for a person who can act rather than take a good story and teach a person to act…Blake deserved to win. He has been consistent all season-long and has true star quality. He doesn’t have a great voice…but it’s easier to train someone’s voice and autotune it rather than teach a person to act as well…Look at Corey Monteith. His voice really improved in season 2 because of his vocal lessons (and autotune).

The thing is, because Blake can act (unlike last years contestants!) he can really be any character, except a female or minority (despite him being half cuban, who knew!). The problem with last season was they were trying to write a character based off of the actors instead of writing a role that fits with glee and casting for that. With Blake’s acting skills they can pretty much take the story wherever they want, and not feel limited.

Actually, it’s called Glee because it’s about people who are members of a Glee Club. It’s character driven. However, singing plays a major role because they are members of the glee club. Therefore, yes, the actors need to be able to sing, but because it is a TV show, they also need to be able to act. Damian can not act, and Samuel, to me, is very one note. Last year they picked the people they liked the best personality-wise, and not the best actors/singers. They realized it was a mistake. This year I think they picked the best actor not the best singer, which may or may not be a mistake. We’ll see! Although, I do think Blake is a talented singer, even if he wasn’t the best.

Now that the season is over its time for a referendum on making sure TV Line’s horrible Michael Slezak never writes about this show again.

Obviously, Charlie and Lily were the most talented people on the show this year. This might be debated here on these boards, but for those in the “industry” who care to watch “The Glee Project” (and surprisingly a lot do) the easy consensus (of those I know and who’s Facebook blogs I’ve read) were that these two had the talent in this contest.

Now, in Slezak’s vernacular they were too “hammy”. Really? Ass. These kids had very little film or TV experience prior to this show. They were trained for the stage. They were trained to play to the balcony. Anyone who teaches theatre know it’s so much easier to get a talented kid to pull back than to get one to go bigger. As impressive as it was that some of the other kids knew the right style for TV acting, I fear most of that was due to eye candy being mistaken for dynamism. On top of Slezak’s ignorance of talent, his disdain for these two kid’s “difficult” personas was disgusting. Charlie was a rambunctious sweetheart and Lily overcompensated for being overweight with benign egotism and fear of being put down (thus, her deflecting of blame). Does Slezak not understand this? Yes, he should comment on it, he should report it. But the judgmental tone in which he wrote about these kids made me want to scream. Has he no empathy?
Yes, society tends to denounce anyone who doesn’t act “normal and humble”. People on these boards certainly did. But a writer (and even a third rate one such as Slezak) should be better than that. He should, to some degree, understand and not condemn a fat girl with false bravado or a boy with so much energy he doesn’t know what to do with it.

And don’t think “The Glee Project” people didn’t know who the most talented kids were on the show. They knew a guy was not going to win this year, so (probably for ratings) they kept the two cutest boys. And they had already dealt with an overweight girl and her problems on the show. Neither Charlie nor Lily was ever going to win. And as they said, this show wasn’t about who was the most talented, it was who fit in best to this year’s Glee.

Yes, Selzak seems sweetly innocuous on his “Idolatry” show (or whatever its called) but I’ve along suspected a nasty queen sitting there passing judgment in his Jersey City apartment with his oft-referenced “husband” and glass of wine. I’m gay and I know my people and there are many who are basically nasty, judgmental high school girls with Grndr accounts. Which is fine. I just want better from a blogger on a major TV reporting site. Especially one who focuses his bullying on a show featuring unformed kids. He disgusted me last year with his disdain for poor Alex and this year he disgusted me again. He ought to be ashamed of himself.

I sometimes wonder if he’s just pandering. Writing what most people on these boards (probably a lot high school girls themselves) believe, to the dismissal of his own beliefs. He might get paid by hit, meaning, if you write what people believe they will visit the sight more often to have their own prejudices reinforced and Slezak will make more money. Does he do the same on Idol? Does he lead the board or the other way around? And speaking of Idol, he is the preeminent Idol blogger, yet did he HEAR what Charlie could do with a song??? Slezak’s Televised Singing Show fan club card should be burnt.

Pretty harsh Owen. I also work in the industry and while I agree with you about Lilly’s ability, Charlie would never be cast in anything I do. Once he pulled his schtick, which he pulled again and again on the show, on set he’d be gone. I don’t have time to hand hold people with too much energy and as for his ability with a song, I thought Nellie was the best vocalist by far on this show and had more star quality than Charlie could ever possess. Charlie will struggle in this industry and it’s not because of Slezak. It’s because he can’t harness his talent to make him someone people in my position would want to put up with. When a name actor acts like Charlie (which none I’ve ever met or worked with have) it’s one thing. When a performer trying to get his foot in the door acts the way he did on set he’ll never go forward. His cloying performance tonight trying to get Aylin the win was about as disingenuous as every other thing he did on this show. I’d hazard to guess his remarks hurt Aylin in the end and I wouldn’t be surprised if she drew that conclusion as well. I don’t always agree with Slezak but most of the time we see eye to eye. I personally thought Shanna just didn’t have what one needs to be on a prime time TV show. Her looks were not up to par even though she was great at acing tests. I don’t see what Slezak saw there at all. She just didn’t look like she belonged on TV and sometimes no matter how talented one is, looks can hold you back. And I loved Ali. I thought if there was ever a show for her to be on, it was Glee. That being said as someone who works with talent in the entertainment industry there were 2 stars on this show from the beginning. Nellie & Blake. They both had “it” and the camera loved them. Nellie needed more work and training than Blake and that’s why he ended up with the win. Lilly was also one of the best, but Blake is a star and that’s why he won this show. Sometimes someone walks in a room and you see something. That’s what happened with Blake. He’s going to be huge and will land movie roles consistently when he’s done with Glee.

I don’t know if Blake will be huge. THAT depends on a lot of luck. But he has a better chance than Aylin or Ali would have had. I think the better person won this year — the question is: Does Glee survive through Season 4?

Scott – Blake looks great on camera and has range as an actor. When he did his evil Darth Blake stuff I believed it totally. I actually think he can do anything you put in front of him. The guy just has it. As for Glee surviving past season 4, that’s a bigger question. With the format change that’s coming up I’m concerned for the show. The best thing they could’ve done was spin off a new show for Rachel/Kurt in NYC with some of the graduating cast coming in to visit and then create a new club at the high school with new leads. I’m still not exactly sure why that didn’t happen. Crossing between NYC and the Glee club can easily be a train wreck. I’m not sure I have faith that the people who write Glee can execute that kind of task. As awful as this sounds, I wondered if Aylin didn’t win because the producers didn’t want to take the risk of alienating a large part of this country trying to tell the Muslim story. I want to believe Aylin didn’t win because once you tell that story there’s not much else to do with her character and they picked Blake because they truly were looking for a future leading actor who could do anything…but somewhere I wonder if they chickened out knowing that a huge part of this country might never get on board with a Muslim storyline not to mention it could’ve put Aylin & her family into danger by people who didn’t approve of what she was doing on TV.

Oh look. The supposedly connected gay man picks the two prettiest people in the competition as the “best”. Not that some of my connected gay men didn’t drool over Blake too, but they also knew where the real talent was. Not to say Blake and especially Nellie weren’t talented. Most of the kids there were (some, oddly were not).Plus, as a friend who I just emailed you post to replies, really, what did Charlie ACTUALLY pull on set, really? He also thinks you’re lying about being in the business, mainly because of that particular comment.

First of all I’m not gay and never represented myself as such. Don’t know where you got that one. As for my being in the business, when something you’ve done in Hollywood makes the front page of Variety and has every agency in Hollywood trying to sign you get back to me.

Disappointed RM stuck with the 1 winner thing. At this point would have been happy to see all of the get a chance especially after dealing with the last season winners were the ones with the most episodes were also the most pointless additions in my book.
Interesting seeing Damian on the finale knowing he’s no longer part of the show. And what was with that trench coat lol

I thought he was kind of bland but consistently decent all season, just like a lot of the WGWGs on Idol. I was rooting for Aylin, whose voice is amazing and who has a great backstory. She also seems like she’d be a hoot to work with. I couldn’t stand Ali early on because I hated her voice, but she was hilarious in this final music video and also seems genuinely sweet. What gets me about this choice of winner is that they emphasized all season that they wanted someone who inspired Ryan to write for them; I saw it in Ali and Aylin tonight and at least the last few episodes, but never saw it from Blake. But then Blake whips out a mediocre poem, and suddenly he’s deep- he said he wanted to show that he was different, but really he was just a popular jock with a sensitive side. Does that sound a little- er, a LOT- like Finn Hudson?
Sidenote: This would have been the season to choose four winners. Any of this year’s Final Six would steamroll Damien and Samuel in both singing and acting.

i have been team ali since fearlessness week but after all their performances tonight i was team alyin and just shocked when blake won. I was thinking he would be third, ali second and alyin first. Ali should have picked a different song, she was warned about being too big in her facial expressions early on and that song is huge. I was worried about Alyin going for adele but she nailed it. I just wasn’t convinced by blake tonight and I feel that someone like him could have been found in a regular casting call, not from this type of show. I was beyond disappointed that they didn’t stil give aylin and ali something….I was also really surprised by how many people were rooting for ali at the end there, I loved her but i didnt realize that many people did too unless they just told some of them to say ali, some to say aylin and no one to say blake just so that it was a bigger surprise. Best of luck to all the contestants in all their endevours.

Ali should not have picked “Poular” as her LCP. She overacted (as usual) and at times her voice came across as shrill. As somebody who has seen “Wicked” a few times and has heard “Popular” hundreds of times, there is a difference between high-pitched singing and shrill. Her facial expresions, ad libs, and wink-winks to the audience were her downfall. I was shocked that so many in the fake audience liked her the best. She should have sung a pop song. In the end when Ryan said something to the effect of “you do great with Broadway songs and we do those sometimes on Glee” I knew she hadn’t won. Thought for sure that Aylin would win, but not surprised that Blake won. Aylin’s LCP was awesome (coming from a person who hasn’t really liked Aylin much), Blake’s was just OK. Clearly Ryan was looking to replace Finn in the McKinley universe.

I was massively uncomfortable and embarrassed for Blake during his poetry reading. It’s great when guys can be emotional, and it takes guts to do it in front of other people, but that poem was terrible! And everyone was in tears, like he was reading an obituary or something. It barely rhymed and was super generic. Did the producers just need to give some kind of excuse to explain why Blake won over the two girls? Before that poem, he was dull, likeable jock Blake. Now he’s . . . what . . . dull, likeable, semi-literate jock Blake? That wasn’t a “different side” of him, it was just a passable poem and a display of literacy.

I didn’t say his poem HAD to rhyme, but he tried to make it rhyme and failed. One funny line doesn’t make up for the lameness of the poem, which wasn’t as “deep” as the weeping writers, etc., made it seem.

I would have been okay with Blake winning until they trotted out Chris Colfer and said he was the epitome of why The Glee Project was made. If that’s true, then the win should have surely gone to Aylin or Ali.

I honestly did not see this coming. First, because my favorite never wins these things, but second because Ryan really liked Aylin, and you could tell he really wanted to write for her. But Blake had the goods from day one, and he deserved to win. Maybe no more than Aylin, but he did deserve it. Aly seemed like SUCH a sweetheart, but her voice is very nasally and I didn’t think I could deal with that on a regular basis. I was also hoping Ryan would just let all three of them win anyway though. But Blake was a pleasant surprise.

But I’m happy for Blake! I don’t understand why everyone is calling him Finn 2.0 or Sam 2.0. Not all attractive white guys are the same. Surely they will come up with a new character for him. I think he’s a good actor and a good singer and I’m excited that he will be joining the show.

They’re calling him that because Ryan Murphy has said several times that they’re looking for the next Finn since Cory’s gone(ish). When he said, “we have cast members going off to college so we’re looking for a specific PERSON to fill that,” I knew Blake had it, because of the comments Ryan had made previously about wanting to fill the Finn spot.

I thought they should give him a cochlear(sp) implant. Play something off him being someone that was deaf and now post-op depressed and the angry kid, because he can hear and (apparently) sing, and that’s cool, but he feels guilty and a bit lost now that he’s not the deaf kid with his deaf friends. You could play with that. He didn’t want it. His parents did. The cost led to his parents splitting. His lives with his Mom and Gram, and both are deaf but now can’t seem to relate to him. Teach him some ASL and give him some scenes where he has to act and communicate his feelings without speach.

Hey if they can put Kevin McHale in a wheelchair for multiple seasons they put a little ear piece on the handsome Blake.

Dude, after three full years on ‘Glee’ as a main character, we’ve never met any parents or siblings of Mercedes and know nothing about her except that she sings and dated Shane. Rachel Berry will be the main character of the show still and will be the only one to appear in every episode. These two facts together (1. the lack of backstory for most characters, and 2. the lack of focus on the high schoolers next season) means that Blake is going to be “Sexy Swaybot 2″ beside Sugar next season.

Wow, what a finale!!!!!!!!!!!! I just gotta say that when the Glee Project first returned to TV, I was rooting for Mario all the way, but ever since Mario left, I was team Blake all the way and by no surprise, HE WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Last week, when I was reading other people’s comments on last week’s episode, someone gave a spoiler saying Ali was the winner and I was watching, thinking I already knew she was gonna win, by surprise, Ryan Murphy announces Blake as the winner and I am so impressed, this year’s winner actually makes sense unlike Damian from last season. Blake is the strongest contender of this year ‘s Glee Project in that he’s consistent, he has star power, his performances were solid, and the camera loves him more than anybody else, plus he’s the best actor there. The video was great and i loved seeing all the previously eliminated contestants again, especially charlie when he said “Ahhh, we’re back bitches”, he’s really funny, all that is except Taryn but I guess it’s because she quit so early in the competition. Blake will really fit in with the Glee cast and I’m really happy for him, but I’m sure that Ali, Aylin and every other contestant from this season will have promising careers for themselves. Blake could also have a rivalry with Sam because he’s similar to Chord Overstreet. Besides Blake, the best guys for me from this season were Abraham, Mario, and Charlie, and the best girls were not only Aylin and Ali, but also Shanna, Nellie, and Dani(Justin Bieber look-alike). Oh, whoever said Charlie’s statement about Aylin ruined all her chances of winning is wrong, but on the other hand it did seem a bit forced and somewhat manipulative because he has a romance with her and he obviously wanted her to win. But non-the-less, I am amazed that Blake won, he truly deserves this.

To Mr. Slezak, no, Aylin was definitely not going to win with or without the poem. Judging by the crowd at the auditorium, Ali had the most rooters followed by Blake. Charlie did the right thing with voicing his support for Aylin as only he and Amber Riley looked to support her winning out of the three.

If you DVR and pause the crowd reaction when Blake is crowned, many of the contestants along with the actors who wanted Ali to win were quite shocked. This was Ali’s to lose and sadly she did (along with Shanna hmmph!). Though Blake did deserve to win too, just not in a season with Shanna and Ali.

I feel as though I wasted an entire season watching this show. It’s like every time I chose to root for a contestant because of their unique qualities or their talent, they were promptly eliminated, while characters I couldn’t stand kept on going and going. By the end, I was thoroughly invested in rooting for either Aylin or Ali, and was downright flabbergasted when the prize went to Blake, the only one of the three finalists I couldn’t get behind.

Honestly, I’m still baffled. Blake was, in my opinion, eminently forgettable, bland, and boring. Just another generic white guy who can sing, dance, and act, and aren’t those a dime a dozen? As good as he was, he somehow breezed through most of the competition without leaving an impression, good or bad. It took him nine weeks to win a homework assignment, and just as long to end up in the bottom three! They had to eliminate most of the cast before he stood out!

Meanwhile, Ali and Aylin absolutely killed their performances, time and again, stepping up to the plate and kicking serious ass. And when Ryan Murphy had a chance to bring something new and interesting to the big time–a gorgeous, talented woman who happened to be in a wheelchair for real or an unconventionally pretty Turkish Muslim with heaps of talent–he went for the safe Finn 2.0, the dull white guy.

I feel as though I was watching an entirely different show than Ryan Murphy, week after week, as interesting and worthy contestants like Nellie and Shanna were manipulated into failing or being dismissed, while Blake coasted his way to victory.

I’m also baffled at the logic behind the “prize.” Last time, they gave out four prizes, and what happened? Damien stayed on way longer than need be and was basically a background prop for most of that time. Samuel felt horribly out of place. Lindsay, who kicked ass, got her two episodes and will probably vanish forever. Alex will probably be back. But still, they handed out -four- prizes and horribly misused the winners. This time, he actually sticks to his guns and just awards one prize? When all three of the final contestants were awesome and Ali and Aylin could have brought something new and vital to the show?

In short, the winner is someone who I just don’t find very interesting and I’m not looking forward to seeing him join Glee where he can get his seven episodes of background filler along with the rest of a horribly bloated cast, and I really wish they’d chosen someone different. I really hope to see Ali or Aylin doing something, somewhere, sometime. Maybe Ali can get a guest appearance on CSI or somesuch as “perky blonde wheelchair girl” who gets killed halfway through the episode. :(

Blake might not have had the life story of the two more ‘interesting’ girls, so on a reality show, he was a bit bland. But he was by far the best actor, so the only way he’ll be boring on glee is if the writers write him that way. He can play anything while both girls were more limited when it came time to film

This is so wrong. I am really upset. The other two girls represent Glee and not Blake! Ladies, don’t ever bother auditioning for next season. Only good-looking guys end up as winners on the Glee Project. The judges are just a bunch of PIGS!!!

I actually didn’t recognize her. Had to rewind to figure out if that was really her. She looked great, as did Amber. But what is with Darren’s hair? I understand he isn’t as gel-obsessed as his character, but a little product would’ve tamed that unruly mop top. And was Chris C. even there for the finale? Didn’t see him in the fake audience.

Ugh. Ryan chose the weakest of the three; and his track record on choosing lesser boys over more-talented girls grows longer. I’ve never been impressed with Blake or his inability to stand out. My wife and I both were rooting for either Ali or Aylin. I thought Ali had the best pure talent, whereas Aylin had the best “casting value” in terms of being a character type never seen on the show before. Either would have made a better choice than fake Blake.

I’d say he was the most consistent, not the most talented. His voice is not that great, but it’s “good enough”. Where as Aylin has a voice that would have worked a lot better on Glee.

In the end you’re only going to make it to the finale if you’re consistent. Ali was also just as consistent as Blake, and Aylin was in the bottom a few times but she was never the worst on any given week. Blake has nothing but a pretty smile and acting ability to go for him but again, Aylin and Ali also have the ability to act too.

I was on team Aylin since the beginnng but I think Ryan picked the safest choice. Aylin isn’t an actress -and although I will miss her beautiful voice and her incredible story -I think I might had been disappointed with her acting ability. Ryan needs actors in the choir room since he is losing Chris Colfer, Lea Michele and Cory Monteith there. I don’t think he should be taking chances on another possible Damian McGinty who could drag that portion of the show down. I’m reserving judgement on Blake until I see what character they write for him -but at least since he is already an actor -i’m sure he will bring some sort of new energy to the show. Overall, I’m not disappointed -and relieved that Ryan went with an actor instead of just a personality who isn’t an actress.

It’s the writer’s job to come up with an interesting character, and perhaps now that they have someone who is a strong actor, they will be *able* to give TGP winner more and better material to work with. I wish there were arcs for Ali and/or Aylin, but the truth is that having four winners last year diluted the stories for the other characters . . . they need to fill up the choir room, but they have to have compelling characters, not just sketches.

Blake deserved to win! He’s an amazing actor. And although I loved Damian I would hate to see Ali or Aylin just be a seat filler like he was in glee.
Ali’s voice was kind of annoying in her last chance performance. But I still thought she was amazing as always :)
And I do believe that Aylin’s oportunity was crushed by Charlie. He should’ve kept his mouth shut. Aylin was amazing.
I hope they bring Shanna, Aylin, Nellie and Ali at some point.

I need some help here. Why were they so adamant about having only 1 winner this year? Especially with so many seniors “graduating”? I think Blake was the best actor and I hope they give him an intersting story line, like, he suffers from depression and no one can figure out why since he’s so good looking or popular or something. I would have liked to see a female winner, especially a girl who is not reed thin – Aylinn could have been a good role model not just for Muslims but also for “normal” sized girls,

Although I am shocked that Blake won, considering the talent and ready-made storylines that Ali and Aylin had, it was the best “casting” choice. Blake is consistently professional, a solid singer, a decent dancer, and a good actor. I thought he’d win the whole thing in the first show, when the mentors commented on how the “camera loves him” and that he brought something different–something like “the handsome guy who doesn’t know it and has a goofy quality.”

Then I got led astray by the the red herrings that were edited in and made Blake seem too “bland” to inspire the writers.

Frankly, it is the writers’ and producer’s job to come up with a story for a character, and the business of casting is to find someone who can tackle anything that is given to them. This year, I think they made the right choice because they picked someone who CAN do that, and the onus is on the writers to define a character that is new and interesting. Perhaps the lackluster writing for the winners last year had to do with their acting ability–they wrote what they thought they could play, and that wasn’t much!–and less to do with the writers than one might suppose.

My gripe with the way they are discussing Blake is that McKinley seems filled with “types” and they are not really representative of the real world. After all, there ARE male high school students who are NOT jocks with hearts of gold or jocks who get girls pregnant. There are many types that are underrepresented. The thing with Blake that bugs me is that Ryan is boasting about who Blake is going to be dating ALREADY. Why can’t characters be single on GLEE? They are supposed to be outcasts and underdogs.

I hope that Blake’s authors stick with their original assessment–guy who doesn’t know he’s hot, goofy offbeat quality, not Finn or Sam 2.0.

And I bet that the storyline of Aylin will show up on the show at some point anyway. Just not with Aylin playing the part.

IMHO, Blake was a ringer. They threw in all these other kids for the reality show. Based on where they are going with the show this season, no WAY were they going to throw in someone like Ali or Aylin with a whole new storyline to support.

I was shocked at first, but I think Ryan Murphy made the right choice. Aylin has a great backstory, except it’s not really hers. When she gets asked about how she would be trailblazing for Muslim-American teens, it’s obvious that she doesn’t have a clue the impact she could have. She has a vague, abstract idea of it, but I don’t think she seriously understands the magnitude of what she could do. She struck me as a person who wanted to be on Glee, and just happened to be Turkish/Muslim. I think the premise of the show is just not structured very well. Some weeks they decide based solely on that week’s performances, some weeks they decide based on who is most inspiring, some weeks they decide based on their entire body of work thus far. Sometimes it’s more important to have a great story, and sometimes it’s more important just be good. I guess that’s just how the industry is, but for a reality show, it’s confusing.

Super bummed Aylin didn’t win. Just not looking forward to Blake at all. Yeah he’s a good actor but he’s also really boring. They spent all season favouring Aylin in footage because she was interesting to watch but Aylin wouldn’t sell posters to young girls the way Blake would so…disappointed.